Fear of the Bionic Fist
by WinterSoldier210
Summary: Iva Presley was just an ordinary woman, working at a bar to pay the bills. But, that's not what HYDRA thinks. HYDRA sees her as the perfect opportunity to gain some of their power back, and in order for that to happen, they must capture her. And who is the perfect one for the kidnapping job? None other than the Winter Soldier.
1. Chapter 1

**Hello, fellow fan fiction readers! I have decided to attempt my own Bucky Barnes/Winter Soldier romance fan fiction after reading so many on this very website and being inspired. This first chapter starts off with an introduction to the main character, Iva Presley, and a brief interaction between her and one of the Avengers. Hope you enjoy!**

 **\- Chapter 1 -**

Timing was never on Iva's side. Looking down at her watch, she cursed under her breath, realizing she had only three minutes to reach a destination that was still a taxi cab ride away on the other side of town. This was going to be Iva's third night not arriving on time. At the rate she was going, she would be lucky if she still had her job by the end of the night.

Iva reached the curbside just as a taxi pulled away. She took a deep breath, trying to keep herself calm. Letting her emotions get out of hand would not be the best option for her right now. Looking down the street, Iva eagerly waited for another taxi to arrive. She paced, going over some song lyrics in her head to keep herself busy. Finally, a taxi turned the corner. Iva waved him down, immediately hopping in when the taxi pulled over to the curb.

"I need to get to Angie's, and quickly!" Iva urged the driver, stuffing a wad of cash in his hand so she wouldn't have to worry about paying him later. Angie's was a bar in the center of Manhattan where Iva sung at on weeknights. She had been working there for three years, ever since the day she turned twenty-one. Iva had to admit, it wasn't the best job in the world, but it paid the bills.

"Come on, come on, come ON!" Iva murmured to herself, jostling her feet impatiently as the taxi took a right onto Fifth Avenue, Angie's coming into view. As the taxi gradually slowed down, she hopped out before the driver had a chance to pull up to the curb. Iva put her hand up in thanks as she jogged in front of him, heading into the alley towards the back entrance. She was lucky this time, seeing as there were no "alley lurkers' around today to pose any type of threat. Pulling the door open, Iva put on as guilty of a face as she could, dragging her feet towards her boss, Butch. He turned immediately when she opened the door, a look of both frustration and worry in his eyes.

"Where the hell have you been? The customers are getting impatient. You know that this is your third night in a row coming in late, right?" Butch questioned, leaning against the doorframe as he wiped his hands on a towel.

"Aw, come on, Butchie! You know I would've been here on time if I could have! I love my job, and I hate seeing that handsome face upset!" Iva exclaimed as she slipped through the doorway to stand in front of Butch, squeezing his face affectionately as she did. She knew that using her special nickname for him and laying on the niceness would slowly, but surely, crack through that hard heart of his. Having worked here as long as she has certainly didn't hurt, either.

"Alright, Iva, this is the last time I'm letting you off so easily. Since you are the only form of entertainment I have that can also make a damn good bloody mary, I have to keep you on. However, if you get here late one more night this week or next, I'll have to cut your check by ten percent for the next two weeks. Have to find some way to punish you without losing my best worker." Butch winked as he said this, heading back into the kitchen. Iva sighed in relief, knowing she was super lucky to have such a lenient boss as Butch.

Iva practically ran into the back room, going towards her locker. Upon reaching it, she frantically put in the locker combination, knowing that if she took much longer, Butch's bad mood would come back. Iva yanked her black performance dress and stiletto heels out of the locker, hurriedly stripping her other clothes off and putting those on instead. One part of her and Butch's deal for her singing performances was that she must wear something form-fitting in order to attract more men during the evening hours. Iva gained much unwanted attention because of it, but in order to keep her job, which she actually enjoyed, she had to follow Butch's orders.

Tugging on the ankle straps of her heels, Iva walked quickly out of the back room and towards the small stage, mentally preparing herself for the next two hours of singing, dancing, and karaoke with the customers.

- **Later on-**

After a tiring couple of hours of performing, Iva was ready for her switch over to bartender. Wrapping an apron around her waist, she wiped her hands off on a towel and leaned against the counter, waiting for a drink order. As Iva looked around at the tables, she noticed a fifty-something year old leering at her over a tall glass of beer. She gave him an icy glare, almost causing him to choke on his sip. If she had had the opportunity, Iva would've happily given him a nice kick in the balls with her stiletto heel.

Iva heard the bell over the door jingle, and she looked over to see a tall, handsome blonde walk in, wearing a Dodgers cap and sunglasses. She watched as he walked up to the bar, taking a seat at the counter right in front of where she was standing. He was rather attractive, very muscular, most likely a soldier at some point in his life. Most soldiers that came into Angie's sat a certain way that Iva recognized immediately. Realizing that she was staring, she gave her head a little shake and put down the towel.

"Good evening. What can I make for you tonight?" Iva asked, reaching for one of the cocktail shakers.

"I'll just take a glass of water, thanks," he said with a little smile, glancing out the window.

Iva gave him a questioning look. "Not to be blatantly rude or anything, but most people don't come up to the bar just for a glass of water. Are you sure I can't make you something else, because your basic water order is hurting my feelings," Iva stated with a small, teasing pout.

The blonde laughed, his bright white teeth almost blinding Iva. "I probably shouldn't, but since you insist, I'll take whatever you make best."

Remembering Butch's comment from earlier, Iva immediately began grabbing ingredients for her Spicy Bloody Mary, adding all of the liquid items and a couple of ice cubes into the shaker. Turning it over a couple times, she poured the contents into a goblet-like glass, adding some black pepper around the rim, a sprinkle of cayenne pepper into the drink, and then a lime wedge on the side. Iva scooted the glass across the counter, leaning her arms against is as she did. "My special Spicy Bloody Mary. Hope you enjoy."

The blonde leaned down and took a sip from the glass without lifting it from the counter. Iva watched his face intently, waiting for a reaction. After swallowing the sip, his lips turned upwards, stretching into a big grin. Iva internally sighed with relief, happy to know that Butch's compliment from earlier was true.

"That's really good! No wonder you work here, you're a master at what you do!" the blonde stated, followed by him taking up the glass and eagerly gulping down the rest of its contents. He then stood up, reaching into his back jeans pocket to grab a five dollar bill, placing it directly in Iva's open hand. She grinned at him, saying thanks as he began to walk towards the door. Noticing his sunglasses were on the counter, Iva called out for him to wait, grabbing them up and jogging to him. He turned around, giving her an appreciative grin.

"I never got your name. I'm Iva Presley," Iva said, offering her hand to him for a handshake. He looked at her hand for the briefest second before he took it, his hand completely enveloping hers.

"The name is Steve. Steve Rogers," the blonde replied, giving Iva one last smile before he put his sunglasses back on and walked out the door.

 **I hope you guys enjoyed the first chapter! The next chapter will involve the Winter Soldier and will give you some insight into how Bucky will be introduced into Iva's life. Just so you guys know now, I'm a busy girl, so it may take me a little while to update since I haven't even started writing Chapter 2 yet. But, anyways, I'd love to hear what everyone thought about the first chapter, what could be better, and any ideas on what you would like to see in future chapters! Also, if you guys would like, please follow! Have a great day! :)**


	2. Chapter 2

**Hi, guys! Sorry that it took me so long to update! Anyways, I hope you enjoy the chapter!**

 **-Chapter 2-**

Struggling against the restraints around his wrists and ankles, Bucky tried to ignore the memories that were flashing through his mind at an overwhelming speed, making him dizzy. This happened every time he was out of cryo for too long, or if HYDRA hadn't wiped his brain for a few days. Sweat pouring down his face, Bucky pushed back into the cushion, wincing at the severe pain pounding at the front of his temple. When one of the assistants came forward with a needle, he tore his metal arm through the bind, sending a punch towards the man's face. Hearing the sound of metal cracking bone, Bucky felt rather pleased with himself.

Alexander Pierce walked in a few moments later, a determination in his step. A couple of the medical assistants ran up to him, warning Pierce that Bucky was unstable and would likely lash out if he got too close. Shaking them off, Pierce continued forward, staring down the asset. Bucky stared right back, knowing that attacking Pierce would not be the best option for him right now. Considering Pierce was the one who decided whether Bucky was put back into cryo or wiped, Bucky tried his best to be on Pierce's good side.

"I have a new mission coming up for you tomorrow. Rather than sending you out on an assassination, we would like for you to, instead, kidnap your target," Pierce told Bucky as he grabbed a rolling chair and sat down in front of Bucky, bending over so that he could look Bucky in the eye. "Now, I know we've never sent you on a kidnapping mission before, but it's highly important that you bring your target back alive. We have some plans that will involve her participation in our future endeavors."

Kidnapping? What made this woman so important that HYDRA was actually requesting for Bucky not to kill her? He knew better than to ask questions, though, so he remained silent, pushing himself back into the cushion.

Pierce seemed to notice Bucky's confusion since he went on to say, "If our lab tests come out successful, you will no longer be our only asset." Pierce then turned to Rumlow. "Go on ahead and wipe him. We can't risk the asset having any lingering doubts about this special mission."

Bucky watched Pierce leave with a look of loathing in his eyes. Rumlow walked up to Bucky with a thick black mouthpiece, which he quickly stuck into Bucky's mouth. One of the assistants attached the restraint to Bucky's metal arm once again, making sure that it was even tighter this time so Bucky couldn't tear through it. Once Rumlow was sure that the asset was tightly restrained, he pushed a button that attached a metal plate to each side of Bucky's face. His chest heaving, Bucky tried to keep his emotions under control, not allowing Rumlow to see how terrified he was. Once the electric shocks started, Bucky could no longer contain himself, his screams filling the room until he blacked out.

 **-Iva's POV-**

Iva always enjoyed taking Eighth Avenue home after her shift, admiring all the bright, multi-colored lights. Her hands deep inside the pockets of her weather-beaten leather jacket, she walked on the sidewalk that ran along the side of Central Park. Iva had a deep love for nature ever since she was a young girl, so she absolutely loved living only a short distance away from such a grand, beautiful park. She smiled as memories came flashing back of her and her older brother roller-skating through the tree-lined paths of a park, racing each other home. Whenever Iva would lose her footing and fall, skinning her knee or injuring herself in some other way, her brother would immediately turn a 360 and roll back towards her, lifting Iva up in his arms and carrying her the rest of the way back home. Noticing a tear escaping her eye, Iva immediately wiped it away, missing those good times.

Once Iva reached her house, she hung her jacket up in the hall closet and made her way to the kitchen, grabbing herself a wine glass and a bottle of Merlot from the cabinet. Settling herself into her favorite comfy chair, Iva turned on the television, turning the channel to E! News to get herself updated on the latest celebrity gossip. Iva herself wasn't one to gossip, but she sure did enjoy a little Hollywood drama.

As Iva was starting to nod off, a headline popped up that made Iva immediately wake back up, sitting straight in her chair. The title read, "Avengers: Here To Save Or Destroy Us?" A face popped up on the screen that, for some odd reason, looked rather familiar to her. It was Captain America, but, other than seeing him in the news, Iva could not understand why she had an incessant feeling that she knew him from somewhere. Shaking off this absurd thought, she turned off the television, walking down the hallway to her room. Shedding her clothes onto the floor, she grabbed one of her silk nighties from the bottom drawer of her dresser, pulling that over top of her head before she crawled underneath the covers. Exhausted from the long shift, Iva immediately fell asleep.

 **Sorry that this chapter is kinda short! So, I hoped you all enjoyed Bucky's introduction and some insight into Iva's life outside of working at the bar. I will try to update Chapter 3 quicker than I did this chapter! Please follow, favorite, and/or review! Let me know what you think about the story so far and if you have any opinions about what you'd like to see in future chapters! :)**


	3. Chapter 3

**Hello, fellow fan fiction readers! It's so great to see that I'm getting close to 100 views and 6 followers after only two chapters. I'm really glad you guys are enjoying my story so far! I hope you guys like this chapter!**

It felt weird for Bucky to be wearing attire that made him look normal. Under regular circumstances, HYDRA made sure that his metal arm was visible to arouse fear in the people around him. But, now that it was covered up by a long sleeve shirt, Bucky didn't know what to think. The rest of his outfit consisted of a pair of khaki pants, leather biker gloves, tennis shoes, a black baseball cap, and a pair of dark sunglasses. Pierce truly tried to make sure that Bucky wouldn't be identifiable by the public. If this kidnapping mission was going to work, no one around him could know who he was.

Bucky walked along the sidewalk, pacing back and forth in front of Angie's. It was close to three in the morning, around the time that his mission's shift was supposed to end. He nonchalantly looked in the window every now and then, keeping an eye on the woman. Based off of his first visual impression, there was nothing special about her. She looked like any other average woman; she had curly shoulder-length brown hair tied back in a ponytail, an average figure, and a plain, makeup-free face. It's not like Bucky paid special attention to women very often since he was kept hidden in HYDRA headquarters most of the time, but nothing about her interested him whatsoever. However, since Pierce had assigned him the mission, Bucky had to see it through and bring her back to the headquarters.

A couple of girls were walking towards Bucky, eyeing him in a way that made him feel uncomfortable. He tried to blend in with the crowd, but they had already caught up before he had a chance to get away.

"Hey there, sexy. Whatcha doin' all by yourself? Can we buy you a drink?" the blonde of the group asked, leaning heavily into Bucky's right side, her hands rubbing up and down the sleeve that hid his metal arm. Hastily slipping his arm out of the girl's grip, he stumbled backwards, trying to escape the claustrophobia those girls were causing him. However, the girls didn't take the hint, and they followed after him, thinking that he was avoiding them to tease them.

"Aw, come back! We can show you a good time," one of the girls whined, biting her lip and strutting towards Bucky confidently.

Bucky was becoming very tense and irritable, wanting to push those girls up against the building to show them who they were messing with. But, that would completely blow the mission by drawing attention to him, possibly causing a crowd to gather, and him losing track of his target. Instead, he icily glared at them, clenching his fists and telling them to back off. The three girls looked at him weirdly, murmuring to themselves what an asshole he was and walked back in the other direction.

Bucky trudged back to the front window of Angie's, searching for his target. When he couldn't locate her, Bucky internally cursed, bolting into the alley that led to the bar's back entrance. He immediately stopped to the left of the door, putting his ear up against it, listening intently for any people on the other side. When Bucky heard nothing, he quietly slipped in, ready to take action.

 **-Iva's POV-**

Today had not been the greatest day for Iva. There had been a larger number of ogglers today than there had been in awhile, and it had caused her to become extremely annoyed. After a second time of the same customer grabbing her butt as she walked by, Iva turned on her heel, burning fury in her eyes. She stomped back over to the man, who was laughing with his buddies as he watched her. When she was only a few inches away from him, she bent her face down close to his, seething by this point.

"How many girls do you do this to, huh? Just because I have a nice ass doesn't give you the god damn right to grab it, you dickhead. If you do it one more time, to me or any of my co-workers, I will personally kick your ass to the curb."

By this point, the bar had turned completely silent, everybody staring in her direction. The man had a look of complete terror on his face, and his friends just looked on in shock. Standing back up, Iva walked to the backroom with purpose in her step. Setting her waiting tray down against the wall, she sat down in a chair, wiping off the sweat that was running down her forehead.

Iva heard heavy footsteps hurriedly coming in her direction, and knew immediately that it was Butch. Sighing, she prepared herself for a lecture from him. Once she heard the footsteps stop in the doorway, she turned around, looking up at Butch. He looked rather conflicted emotionally, a mixture of anger and pity in his eyes.

"If you're going to lecture me, go on ahead and get it over with. If you were a girl and the same thing happened to you, I know for a fact that you would've done the exact same thing that I just did," Iva said stubbornly, crossing her arms over her chest.

Butch just seemed to deflate after she said this, his arms dropping to his sides. "You know the rules, Iva. It's not okay for a worker to verbally threaten a customer. But, you are absolutely right. If it had been me, I would've told him off, too. Especially after what you have been through."

Why did Butch have to bring her past up? Immediately, Iva felt tears spring to her eyes, threatening to roll down her cheeks. She sniffled, biting her lip in an attempt to keep her emotions under control. It was no use, though. After such a long, tiring day, she couldn't fight it any longer. Iva broke down in wracking sobs, putting her head in her hands. Butch walked over to her, wrapping his arms around her. Iva turned her head into Butch's shoulder, clinging onto him. Even after a year, her traumatic past continued to haunt her.

"Come on, darlin'. You're done for the day, and I want you to take tomorrow off to rest. I'll find someone to take over your shift. How about you go change and I'll drive you home once I get the place cleaned up?" Butch murmured, softly stroking Iva's hair.

Wiping away the tears with her apron, Iva shook her head. "I'll be fine, Butchie. You live on the complete other side of town, so that would be a waste of time for you to take me home. I'm capable of taking care of myself, you know that," Iva said, giving Butch a shaky smile.

Butch put his hands on Iva's cheeks, planting a kiss on her forehead. "You know damn well that I see you as the strongest woman I know. Go home and get some sleep. You deserve it."

Watching Butch walk away, Iva remembered when she had come running to Butch after the terrible event. He had immediately offered her a temporary place to stay in his own home, giving her his bed while he slept on the couch. When she had woken up in the middle of the night, unable to breathe because she was crying so hard, Butch had come into the room, wrapping her up in his arms and whispering to her that she would be alright, that she was a strong woman and would make it through. Ever since that day, Butch had been a big brother figure to her, and she absolutely adored him.

Slipping off her apron, she shook her head at the food smears all across the front of it. Iva decided then that she would do a load of laundry once she got home, and then binge watch her favorite TV show, Friends. However, that would not come to be. Before Iva had the chance to close her locker, a black cloth was put across her mouth and nose, and she immediately recognized the smell of chlorophyll. Iva struggled against the man behind her, trying to escape, but the drug took instant effect on her, her vision going blurry before she sank back into the man's arms, completely knocked out.

 **This has been my favorite chapter yet to write, and I hope you guys enjoyed reading it as much as I did writing it! Please follow, review, and/or favorite! Let me know what you think about what's happened so far, and if you have any ideas on what you'd like to see in future chapters. :)**


	4. Chapter 4

**Good evening, fellow FanFiction readers! Sorry for the delay in posting Chapter 4! I struggled with this chapter a bit, trying to get it so that I was content with what I had written. Also, thank you to my first reviewer, Pelryniewcz, for inquiring about why HYDRA wants Iva and what is so special about her. Hopefully, this chapter helps to answer your question! Hope you all enjoy! :)**

Iva woke up in a state of confusion, not sure where she was or why she felt like she had a load of bricks weighing her head down. She was rather dizzy, and wouldn't have bothered to look around if her nagging curiosity hadn't gotten the best of her. Iva groggily opened her eyes, blinking a few times in an attempt to make the blurriness go away. From what she could tell, she was in some sort of observation room, the walls completely covered in metal with a camera in each corner where the ceiling and wall met. Whoever was watching her must deal with some dangerous people if they had to have a camera view from each corner of the room.

Iva was having a difficult time remembering what had happened up to her kidnapping. She did recall her emotional conversation with Butch, and then changing out of her work attire, but there was a huge blank space in her mind after that. Iva could still smell the slightest bit of chlorophyll, so at least she knew why she felt so out of it. The main question, though, was why someone would kidnap her in the first place.

Iva heard a door creak open behind her, and a couple male voices come into the room. She watched as a suit with blonde hair and a wrinkled face walked into her line of sight to her left, leaning against a counter as he observed her. Another man walked over to her right, wearing an all black outfit with short black hair and a smug look on his face. She would've happily smacked that smile off his face if her hands hadn't been tied to the back of the chair.

"Miss Presley, can I call you Iva?" Pierce asked, moving forward to stand in front of her.

Iva glared up at him, a look of complete hatred in her eyes. No one called her Iva except for people that she was close with.

After a long, uncomfortable silence, Pierce finally said, "Well, I take that as a no. I must sincerely apologize for the way you were brought here. But, we couldn't take a no for an answer, so we sent our asset to pick you up instead."

"Pick me up? You call that picking me up? He fucking KIDNAPPED me!" Iva exclaimed, wriggling her wrists against the binds in hopes of loosening the tie, but only making them tighter instead. Iva sighed in exasperation, her shoulders drooping in defeat.

"Now, Miss Presley, don't go getting upset now. If you get too out of control, I'll have to sit Rumlow on you, do you understand?" Pierce asked in an effort to intimidate Iva.

Iva looked over at Rumlow, who had put a hand to the part of his belt that held his shocking device. Iva almost had to laugh, but she knew better than to urge on the two men. She'd rather stay as uninjured as possible and find out what they wanted from her. So, instead, she scooted herself down in the chair, staring at the wall in front of her.

"I'm glad we have an understanding," Pierce continued. "I'm sure you're wondering why we have taken you captive. Well, I have a proposition for you. I had my men do some background research on you for the past week, and, come to find out, you have an impressive history in martial arts and defense techniques, am I correct?"

Damn...Iva had tried to keep her martial arts training on the down low as much as possible, but with a little Internet researching, Iva guessed that they could have found out pretty much everything about her. She decided to cooperate, so she silently nodded in agreement.

"As a secret agency that works for the government, our agents need to have some training in martial arts and other fighting techniques, and we haven't been able to locate a possible candidate until we found you. On behalf of our agency, I'd like to offer you a position as our new martial arts trainer." Pierce then offered his hand out to Iva for her to shake in acceptance of the offer.

"Do I really have a choice?" Iva questioned, an annoyed tone to her voice. When Pierce shook his head, she sighed and looked back at her hands. "I can't exactly shake your hand until you get these stupid binds off of me."

That was Rumlow's cue to walk over to Iva and release her from her binds. Once he did, Iva grabbed hold of Pierce's hand and briefly shook it before she dropped her hand back down into her lap, tenderly rubbing her wrist with her thumb.

"Great. You will start tomorrow afternoon. Rumlow will show you to the room you will be staying in. Everything you need is in that room. The rest will be explained to you later on. Just follow the orders you are given. I look forward to seeing all that you have to offer us." Pierce gave her a tight smile before he exited the room.

-l-l-l-l-l-l-l-l-l-l-l-l-l-l-l-l-l-l-l-l-

After taking Iva to her room and locking her in, Rumlow walked towards Pierce's office with a few questions running through his mind, trying to determine if he should even risk asking them. With a steadfast confidence, he placed two knuckle raps upon Pierce's door before letting himself in. He closed the door behind him and locked it for the purpose of having no interruptions during their conversation.

"What is it, Rumlow?" Pierce asked, a pair of glasses placed precariously near the tip of his nose, a newspaper open in his lap.

"Permission to ask about Iva's purpose here?" Rumlow asked, his hands folded behind him, placing his feet firmly in a solid stance, appearing like a soldier at attention.

Pierce glanced up from his newspaper, an unreadable expression on his face. "You may proceed."

"What is the exact plan for Mission Iva? Why put her as martial arts trainer if the lab tests came out successful? We could start her on IV treatments tomorrow morning, putting our plan in action even sooner than originally thought. We could gain our power back faster than we ever imagined," Rumlow insisted, his words coming out in a rush, his impatience rising to the surface so that even Pierce noticed.

Pierce gave a little chuckle as he folded up the newspaper and placed it on his desk. He stood up from his chair, walking over to stand in front of Rumlow. Pierce placed his hand on Rumlow's shoulder, looking directly at him. "Are you doubting my mission plans, Rumlow?"

"No, sir. Just curious," Rumlow replied, his eyes downcast, believing that he had made a mistake in questioning Pierce's motives.

"The purpose of holding out before starting tests on Iva is to work on gaining her trust. We just kidnapped her, so she isn't liking us too much right now, so it'd be best for us to get on her good side, if possible. Also, like I explained to her, our agents are lacking more than ever in martial arts training. You've personally experienced the beatings that Captain America has given you and the others. I can't allow anyone to humiliate me like that again, so Iva will train you boys for the next couple of weeks. Then, after I feel like Iva has accomplished in training the agents, then we will start the treatments on her. You understand where I'm coming from now, Rumlow?"

"Yes, sir," Rumlow stated, nodding in agreement under Pierce's penetrating stare.

"Good. I'm glad you agree. Now, I recommend you go and get some sleep. You have a long day ahead of you tomorrow."

This was Rumlow's cue to leave. Rumlow gave a brief nod before turning on his heel and walking out the door.

After Rumlow had closed the door behind him, Pierce sat down in his desk chair, turning around so that he looked out at the city view through the window that took up an entire wall's length of space. Pierce sighed, feeling rather content with himself and looking forward to what the future held for him and his plans for HYDRA's rise back to power.

 **I hope you guys enjoyed Chapter 4! I really enjoyed writing it and offering you guys some insight into why HYDRA was so interested in Iva in the first place. Sorry that Bucky didn't make an appearance in this chapter, but he will be coming back for the next one! Please follow, favorite, and/or review! :)**


	5. Chapter 5

**Hi, my fellow Fanfictioners! I am SO sorry for such a late update. I haven't been having the greatest time these past few weeks, what with the place I've been volunteering at for the past three years getting ready to close down. This chapter also in general took me a little bit longer to write. This chapter is a bit different in that it only involves Iva's POV. I hope you enjoy!**

Iva woke with a start, unsure of where she was and what all had happened within the past twenty-four hours. She sat up, stretching out the kinks in her back from the metal cot. Looking around her, Iva noticed that she had been put in, yet again, a metal-encased room that held the cot, a small cupboard, a sink, a toilet, and a set of drawers. Her curious instinct kicking in, she stood up, walking over to the cupboard to investigate. Inside, Iva found a set of clothes all folded up nice and neat. Pulling them out, she walked back over to the cot and laid them out. The outfit consisted of a basic V-neck black tank top, a pair of black leather leggings, black combat boots, a pair of socks, and an ID tag.

"This must be what they expect me to wear for training today," Iva thought to herself, slightly amused, but also annoyed. Did they want her to look like a sex kitten? This outfit was going to have the men paying more attention to her body than to what she was trying to demonstrate. Shaking her head, Iva took off her current attire and, with some difficulty, maneuvered herself into her new clothes. The outfit was like a second skin, the material showing off every curve of her body. Already blushing from thinking about the attention she would receive, Iva folded up her dirty clothes and put them in the cupboard.

A brief, hard knock came upon the door that made Iva jump. "Five minutes til' lunch time, Miss Presley. I will take you to the cafeteria once you're ready," the voice outside the door stated. Picking up the ID tag from the bed, she clipped it on the upper right side of her leggings. Looking around to make sure she hadn't left anything behind, Iva gave a nod of confirmation and then went to the door and knocked so they'd know she was ready. She heard the man on the other side insert the key into the lock and turn it, carefully pushing the door open all the way. Two guards stood in the doorway, looking at Iva cautiously as they waited to see if they'd need to subdue her.

"No worries, guys. I don't have any plans on trying to escape. Here, you can even have a hold of me the whole way there if you want," Iva admitted, offering an arm to each of the men. They nervously leaned back at first, looking at each other warily. But, when they realized Iva meant what she said, they each took a hold of an elbow and guided her down the hallway towards the cafeteria.

As they got closer to their destination, the smell of different foods wafted down the hall, making Iva lick her lips in anticipation in the hopefully wonderful meal she was getting ready to have. Turning the corner, they entered a large room, taken up mostly by long tables that were practically full with male agents who immediately turned their attention towards her like she was the first woman they'd seen in months. Iva turned her attention to the buffet a few feet in front of her that immediately made her quicken her pace once the guards decided to release her. It was almost like a restaurant, there were so many options. Iva's stomach grumbled in protest, making her realize how long it'd been since she had last eaten. She grabbed a plate and immediately filled it up with chicken tenders, green beans, corn on the cob, and dinner rolls. When she was content, Iva strolled over to an empty table and sat down, taking up her fork and knife and diving right into her food.

"Hold up there, super-shit. What makes you think you get to eat with us? You deserve to starve back in your cell." Iva wouldn't have bothered to look up if she hadn't had a plate flung at her head right after. She ducked, barely missing getting hit square in the face.

"What the fuck?" Iva murmured, looking around as fury started to burn deep in her gut. She noticed a group of agents surrounding a huge mass of a man with brown wavy hair that hung in his face so his eyes couldn't be seen. He also wore an all black outfit that was similar to the other agents' except for having the left sleeve of his shirt missing to show a metal arm. Her blood seemed to run cold at the sight of him. Was that the man that had kidnapped her? She could've sworn one of the man's arms had felt colder than any normal arm would have felt.

"What, you aren't going to fight back, you son of a bitch? You saving it up for your precious little mission later?" one of the agents taunted, dumping a pitcher of ice water over the man's head. Iva saw him flinch, his teeth gritting in anger. If someone didn't break this up soon, the cafeteria would be turned into a bloody scene real quick.

Having no idea where the sense of confidence had come from, Iva stood up from her table and walked over to the group, pushing her way through the agents until she was standing right beside the man who had started the whole confrontation.

"What the hell do you think you're doing?" Iva asked, taking hold of the agent's arm before he could dump his plate of food over the man's head.

The agent turned on his heel slowly, eyeing Iva furiously. Seeing that she was just a girl, the agent relaxed, giving her a sly smile. "Well, hello there, sexy. Where'd you come from, Gorgeousville?"

Iva snorted, finding the agent's attempt at flirtation humorous. "I'd appreciate if you minded your own business and left him alone." Iva was feeling a little more nervous now that everyone had their attention on her, but she wasn't going to back down. Iva hated bullies, and would protect anyone and everyone from experiencing bullying, even if the man she was defending had kidnapped her.

"Aw, come on sweetheart. We're just having a lil' fun is all, right guys?" the agent asked the others around him. No one responded back, not sure what to make of the situation happening in front of them.

"I don't take dumping a pitcher of water over this man's head as a funny matter," Iva stated threateningly, glaring at him as she crossed her arms over her chest.

"Oh, really? And what are you going to do about it?" the agent teased, edging himself closer to Iva, his face only inches from hers. Iva noticed his hand wrap around towards her back, and she immediately knew his intentions, not believing the audacity this man had. Before the agent knew what was coming, Iva took a firm hold on his left arm with one hand, bringing it towards her while taking the elbow of her right arm and bringing it down hard on the pit of his elbow. The agent yelped, holding onto his arm in pain as he stumbled backwards. Seeing the perfect shot, Iva gave him a sharp front kick to the stomach, sending the agent flying into a table a few feet behind him.

"That'll teach you not to mess with your martial arts instructor, you bastard!" Iva yelled at the agent, shaking herself off as she turned around and walked towards the soaking wet man. All of the other agents moved out of her way, staring at her in awe and staying completely quiet.

"Come with me," Iva murmured to the man as she grabbed ahold of the man's metal hand. Surprisingly, he followed her, allowing Iva to direct him towards wherever she was going. What Iva had failed to notice was that the man had a small, amused smirk on his face as he followed behind her, watching her intently while they walked.

 **I hope you guys enjoyed the latest update! Please feel free to follow, favorite, or review! I'd love to know what you guys think so far, if you guys have any ideas on what'd you like to see in future chapters, or if there is anything I can fix to make the story better. :)**


	6. Chapter 6

**Hello, my beloved FanFictioners! I am SO very sorry for being this late in updating the story. The end of the year has been super crazy, and I've barely had any time to write. I was finally able to finish Chapter 6, and I hope you guys enjoy it! :)**

Iva stormed off down the hallway, a tight grip around the man's hand as she led him into her room, firmly closing the door behind them. Iva gave him a light push in the chest, signaling for him to take a seat on the cot.

Bucky plopped down on the cot as Iva rummaged through the drawers, looking for something to dry the soaking wet man. The smirk that had been on his face only moments ago had disappeared, him now realizing that a woman had defended him. He should have just beaten the man to a pulp himself, but that would've resulted in another mind wipe, which he tried to stay as far away from as possible.

When Iva had finally located a small towel and turned back toward the man, she immediately noticed the deep scowl on his face and the cloudy look in his eyes. Iva recognized that look since she often was drawn into her own train of thought, oblivious to all that was going on around her. Iva slowly walked over to the man, draping the towel over his head when she reached him. As she rubbed his hair gently with the towel, she felt the man tense underneath her touch, his eyes raising to give her a murderous glare. She tensed in response, realizing how stupid she was not to have considered how dangerous of a position she could've just put herself in.

"So, what's your name?" Iva asked the man as she continued to dry his hair, working her way down his head to the waves at the nape of his neck. She didn't make direct eye contact with him as she asked, afraid it might scare him away or set him off. Iva didn't know the man, so she didn't know how he would react to certain things.

The man became completely stiff, his hands balling up into fists. Iva backed away from him, realizing that she had, for some unknown reason, made him extremely upset with her question. Iva put herself up against the counter, trying to get as far away from him as possible. Looking to the door, she tried to judge if she'd be able to make it out into the hallway before he became physical.

"I don't know," the man responded, his voice gruff and low.

All thoughts of making a run for it disappeared when Iva heard him speak. He sounded so pitiful and confused, yet had such an overwhelming presence. How could she be so afraid of him, but want to embrace him at the same time? Iva barely knew the man, yet she already had conflicting emotions going on.

"You don't know? How can you not know your own name?" Iva tried to joke, but was only given a glare in response. Maybe she just needed to keep her mouth shut, but since the man had already opened his mouth, she hoped he would continue talking.

The man lowered his eyes to the floor, refusing to make eye contact with Iva. "Why should I trust you? And why are you so interested in me? I'm the one who kidnapped you. You should be afraid, very afraid."

Iva's grip on the counter tightened at his response. So, he was a dangerous man. But, was he dangerous by choice or by force? Even though he said she should be scared, she wasn't, no matter how stupid that may be. Iva released her hold on the countertop and made her way back over to the man, picking the towel back up and starting to wipe at his face and neck area. He watched her with curiosity and surprise, wondering why she hadn't made the decision to get Rumlow.

"Why should you trust me? Because I, myself, am not one to put much faith in people, and it takes me awhile to trust someone. So, I completely understand how difficult it can be to put trust in others. And, even though you may have kidnapped me, I don't believe it was by your own choice. I think they made you do it. From my first impression of you, I don't think you're the type of person to do mean things by your own accord, and I can read people well. I am so interested in you because, in a way, you are much like me," Iva responded, kneeling down in front of him to rub at his metal arm. When he didn't respond one way or another, she raised her face up to look at him. He stared at her with wide eyes, a look of complete shock on his face. Just as he was getting ready to say something, a rough knock came at the door, immediately followed by it being thrown open. Both Rumlow and Pierced took up the doorway, a fierce set to both of their faces.

"Good afternoon, Miss Presley. I see that you've been introduced to our asset here," Pierce stated, motioning towards Bucky. Rumlow took this as his cue, strutting over to Bucky and grabbing him roughly by the arm, dragging him upwards from the cot.

"Take him to the preparation room, and get him set for combat. Immediately after the training session, he will be given the new mission," Pierce murmured to Rumlow as he and Bucky walked by. Hearing this, Bucky tensed, his teeth grinding together in response. After they had left, Pierce turned his attention to Iva and closed the door.

"I know we didn't explain this to you earlier, so you'll only be given a warning this time around. The asset shall not be in close proximity to you without security nearby. He's a dangerous man, and I wouldn't want you to go getting hurt. I would recommend you stay far away from him. However, he has been trained for combat, so he will be your sparring partner for the session later on today. Rumlow, myself, and a few others will be watching over the training, so you have nothing to worry about. Do I make myself clear?"

"Yes, sir. I apologize," Iva stated, looking towards the floor as she did so.

"Good. We will come get you once we're ready for you. Until then, I would like for you to stay in this room. I will have one of the guards bring you lunch," Pierce responded as he turned on his heel and walked out of the room, closing and locking the door behind him.

Iva sat on the cot where the metal-armed man had just been, sighing. There was something funny about Pierce, but she couldn't quite put her finger on what. Until she figured out who he truly was, Iva would not trust him. Picking up the damp towel to the right of her, she wrung it in her hands, remembering the man's soft brown curls and the fearsome, yet innocent look in his eyes. She could not get his image out of her head. Figuring she had no time to lose, Iva lay back on the cot, falling asleep with the towel wrapped up tightly in her arms.


	7. Chapter 7

**Hey, guys! Sorry that it took me close to a month to update! This chapter is taking a different route than I've been taking, so it took me awhile to get it the way I wanted it to be. So, I introduced Cap at the beginning of the story, and I'm now bringing him back, along with Natasha, Clint, Tony, Sam, and Bruce. Hope you guys enjoy! Would love to get some feedback if you have any, so please review, follow, etc.! :)**

"Guys, I lost her...did anyone else see where Mister Metallic took her?" Clint asked as he walked into the kitchen of Tony's building. Natasha, Steve, and Sam had gathered around the island in the middle of the room, tension thick in the air. The only one unaccounted for was Tony, which wasn't a huge surprise since he turned up late for most of their meetings.

"I was keeping watch at the front of the building, so I didn't know what happened until Natasha notified me. What I don't understand is why none of us heard or saw Iva struggle. Did the guy drug her?" Steve questioned, placing his chin on top of the counter.

"The kidnapper had some type of cloth placed across her nose and mouth. I can only assume he had it wetted with chloroform because Iva was limp in his arms. Before I had the chance to get down from the roof, he had laid her in the back of a black Sudan, hopped in next to her, and took off. It's my fault she's gone. I could've acted faster and gotten to her before they left," Natasha murmured, wringing her hands in frustration.

"We were specifically instructed not to confront anyone or draw any attention to ourselves. None of us were armed, so we couldn't have done anything to save Iva even if one of us had been nearby. With that metal arm of his, we have no idea what that guy is capable of. You did what you could, Nat, and that's all that we can ask for," Clint stated, rubbing Natasha's back in an attempt to comfort her.

"Do we know anything about this mysterious kidnapper? Is he in SHIELD's database?" Sam questioned, looking to Steve for confirmation.

"Fury's on it. Clint and I gave him as much detail about the kidnapper as possible, so he's going to do some research and get back to us on it. He's as concerned about Iva as we are." Steve leaned back on his stool, a thoughtful look on his face. "I can't help but think that all of this has something to do with Pierce and his cronies."

"Why do you think that?" Sam asked.

"It just has their name written all over it. I can't put my finger on exactly why, but I've never felt more sure about my gut instinct. I can understand if you guys don't believe me..."

"Now, why would you say that, Cap?" Tony asked, stepping out of the elevator and making his way towards the group.

"Thanks for finally deciding to join. It's nice to know that you were listening in the whole time," Natasha murmured, crossing her arms over her chest.

"I thought I'd wait until the perfect moment to come in. Seems like I fulfilled my wish. It's unbelievable how tense the atmosphere is. Maybe I should've drank another glass of scotch before I came down," Tony teased, pulling up a stool and sitting down. "So, what's the plan, Cap? Or are you actually stuck on what to do for once?"

"Now is not the time to start one of your cat fights, Tony. This is serious. Do you realize how pissed Banner is going to be when he hears we lost Iva?" Clint scolded, staring daggers at Tony.

"See, that's where you're wrong, Clint. I am not included in this 'we' you speak of. So, it's just you guys who have to worry about Banner going green," Tony stated, looking around with a content smirk on his face.

"Not so fast, Stark. You know you could've sent one of your suits with us to help keep an eye on the place and protect Iva. So, some of the blame is also on you," Natasha stated, pushing back her stool and going to the fridge, grabbing a beer from the left door. "Anyone else want one while I'm over here?" Everybody, even Steve, instantly raised their hands at Natasha's offer. Wrestling with five beer bottles in her arms, she gingerly walked back over to the counter, setting one down in front of each person.

"We need to determine what we're going to do from here. We can't just sit around while something bad might be happening to Iva. And there's no saying what Banner might do to us once he hears about our failed mission," Steve stated as he looked around the group, hoping for someone to offer up an idea.

The sound of a door shutting near the front of the building made everyone freeze up. Steve and Natasha made eye contact, both of them with fear and guilt clear on their faces. The five of them looked to the kitchen entryway as Bruce walked in, whistling a little tune as he set a bunch of grocery bags on the floor. Noticing the uncomfortable silence, Bruce slowly straightened up, looking around at the group with a nervous look in his eyes.

"Guys, what's going on? Shouldn't you be at the bar keeping an eye on Iva like I asked you to?" Bruce asked, his hands clenching into fists at his sides.

Natasha stepped forward, her hands up in a defensive position. With a nervous sigh, Natasha said, "Bruce, we have something to tell you, and you're not going to like it."


	8. Chapter 8

**Hi, guys! I know this is really late, and I'm so sorry! I just want to let you guys know that I am writing my chapters both to please myself, and hopefully to please you all as well. And, in order for me to do that, I have to make my chapters as perfect as I can. So, it may take me a little while to update, but I am doing it as quickly as I can! I hope you guys enjoy this chapter! Also, thanks to all the people that just started recently following me! I truly appreciate it! Also, I will be trying to make my chapters longer in the future, because I feel like they've been too short lately.**

Iva could not understand why she was being such a nervous wreck. After walking down the same hallway for what seemed like forever, Iva could hear many voices up ahead, all male. She looked around the guards in front of her to see about fifty or so men, all sitting in small groups, some laughing and having a good time while others were in serious conversation. When Iva and the guards entered the room, it immediately fell silent, all eyes upon them. Iva felt like she was underneath a microscope, all the agents looking her up and down, some with lust in their eyes while others just stared with absolutely no emotion. Iva was feeling highly uncomfortable, so she slowly moved closer to the guards that stood stock still in front of her, trying as best as she could to hide from all the attention.

"I see that you all have met your new defenses instructor," Pierce stated upon entering the room. Right behind him were Rumlow and a tall, buff guard, both of them clenching tightly onto Bucky's arms as they dragged him into the room. Iva tried to make eye contact with him, but he just kept his eyes glued to the floor, seeming to be frozen in place.

Pierce walked over to Iva, firmly placing a hand on her shoulder. "I hope you approve of your group of students here. I'm sure they're very eager to learn new strategies from you. I look forward to seeing what you have to offer us." Pierce gave Iva a slight smile as he headed towards Rumlow and the guard. He motioned for them to let go of Bucky, which they did. Pierce and the other two then walked over to the other side of a windowed wall, sitting down in chairs to watch the training.

"Well, I guess that's my cue," Iva murmured to herself as she clapped her hands together, putting a bright smile on her face. "Hi, guys. My name's Iva. I recognize some of your faces from earlier today in the cafeteria. I hope I didn't give you guys a bad impression of myself at lunch today."

Many of the agents snickered when Iva said this, immediately looking toward the agent who she had taken out. That agent looked at the floor sheepishly, his face turning a bright cherry red.

"No hard feelings from me. What's past is past," Iva said to the blushing agent, turning her attention towards Bucky. "Okay, so I see that I have my own sparring partner chosen for me. I want you all to partner up and I'll do some demonstrations, which you'll then mimic after I finish. Do we have an understanding?" Most of the agents nodded in approval as they moved around, grouping up.

"We're going to begin with some simple defense techniques to warm up. First is what I call the wrist jerk-and-release. It's a rather standard way to get away from someone who has a tight hold on your wrist. To start off, I'm going to have my partner here grab onto my wrist." Iva looked to Bucky, who was still standing a good ten feet or so away from her, staring at her with an uncomfortable look in his eyes. She motioned with her head for him to come over to her. Reluctantly, he walked forward, lightly taking ahold of her wrist.

"If we're going to make this realistic, I'm going to need you to hold tighter than that," Iva stated under her breath, trying to make eye contact with him. He finally looked at her, understanding that she was being serious. He squeezed tighter, almost making Iva wince, but she nodded her approval.

"So, how am I going to get out of this type of hold? I can't just jerk my arm out of his grasp." Iva tugged to demonstrate, showing that there was no way she could get away from him. "The quickest and most successful way to do this is to twist your wrist so that your thumb matches up with the area that connects your attacker's thumb and fingers, then you jerk away sharply by bending your elbow towards you and yanking away. Now, let's see you try it."

This training went on for a good twenty minutes before Iva decided to move on to more complicated techniques. The one thing that she worried about was if her partner would be willing to put an attack move on her that she could figure out how to get out of. Chewing on her bottom lip, Iva upped her confidence and decided she would try.

"To conclude our first training session, I'm going to have my partner here put an attack move on me of his choice that I'll show you how to get out of." Iva looked to Bucky, who seemed rather unenthused to follow anything she asked him to do. Iva stared at him, annoyance building up rather quickly.

"Come on, this is the last thing I'm asking you to do. Please?" Iva asked, reaching her hand out to him. He just continued to look at her, not moving an inch. That was the last straw for Iva's patience.

"Just DO something, damn it!" Iva yelled, stepping towards him threateningly.

Those words seemed to make something snap in Bucky. He threw himself at Iva, knocking her to the ground. He immediately grabbed ahold of her wrists, planting them above her head. He then placed one knee firmly into her stomach and the other between her legs.

Iva had nowhere to go, and had no clue what to do. All logical thought flew out of her mind when she realized how close Bucky's face was to hers. The position he had her in didn't exactly having her thinking the most innocent of thoughts either. Iva looked into his eyes, seeing...was that a hint of humor? He seemed to be rather pleased with himself. Even though Iva knew everyone was looking at her, she had no plan of making Bucky move, quite enjoying his closeness.

Iva heard footsteps running towards them, and before she knew it, Bucky was ripped off of her. Rumlow and the other guard threw him into the wall, his head bouncing off the wall rather loudly, knocking him unconscious. Before she could go to him, Pierce was standing over to her, offering her a hand. Iva took it and stood up, instantly letting go once she was on her feet again.

"I'm sorry for his behavior, Miss Presley. He usually doesn't attack like that," Pierce apologized, watching as Bucky was dragged down the hall. "That'll be the end of training today since your partner will no longer be of use for the rest of the day. We'll start back up again tomorrow." Pierce then left the room as well, following the other two.

Iva stayed standing in the middle of the room as all the other agents started filing out into the hallway, mumbling in confusion as to what had just happened. Iva looked down at her wrists, seeing that they were already beginning to bruise where Bucky's hands had been. She sank down to the floor, not able to believe what had just happened. That man was sure full of surprises, and he was already having a huge effect on her hormones and emotions. Iva knew from them on that the man Pierce called their "asset" would be the death of her.


End file.
